Why Christian Schools Shouldn't Be Afraid of Being Compared to the Military

It's a common complain that Christian education is being called as a military form of education. It's even more shameful that some "Christian" education even end up with some form of Antinomianism where children should be allowed to run around and shout. Dedicated Baptist and Evangelical schools are also criticized by some Roman Catholic schools as being too much like a military. But the Bible says that the Christian life is that of a soldier. Sorry, I didn't say it. The Word of God said it.

2 Timothy 2:3-4 - Thou therefore endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

Did you read that? The Christian life is called to be a soldier of Jesus Christ. One must endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Christian education isn't meant to fit in with the world. Rather, it should teach its soldiers how to overcome the world. Charles H. Spurgeon said these words that should ring a bell against the heresy that the Church is just a hospital for sinners:

Alas! Much has been done of late to promote the production of dwarfish Christians. Poor, sickly believers turn the Church into a hospital, rather than an army. Oh, to have a church built up with the deep godliness of people who know the Lord in their very hearts and will seek to follow the Lamb wherever He goes!

How true indeed. The Church doesn't stop with its job as a hospital for repentant sinners. It's also a museum of the righteous saints of God who were once sinners. It's also the army that marches to fight sin and preach the Gospel. The life of the Christian is not one of relaxation but one of affliction. Jesus didn't tell people to carry their couch and be comfortable. He called them to carry their crosses and follow Him (Matthew 10:38, 16:24, Mark 8:34, 10:21, Luke 9:23).

Christian education shouldn't be any different when it comes to education. Romans 13:1-3 says that Christians are not called to conform to this world but to renew their mind in Christ. Why should Christian educators even care if they aren't popular with the world? John 15:18-19 and James 4:4 warns that friendship with the world is enmity with God. There can be no friendship with the world and with God. You can't be faithful to God and popular with the world. You have to take one and pick the other because both are contrary to each other. One's a necessity the other is junk.

Why so many people today grow up without the necessary values is because of how screwed up secular education can get. Instead of equipping them moral values they are teaching them how to live like rest of the world. You might be able to observe how often these schools teach that you must conform to the majority all the time whether the people are right or wrong. Unfortunately, conforming to the majority even when it's wrong only led to bad decisions. Think of what our Lord Jesus said in Matthew 7:13-14 that only a few ever make it into Heaven and there are more people in Hell than in Heaven. Conforming to the majority is only right when the majority is right. Wrong will always be wrong and right will always be right regardless of how many people believe it. Air is real not because majority of people believe it but because it's a fact.

Christian education is never meant to teach its students to live like the rest of the world. Instead, it focuses on teaching Christian values. It should mean not blending into the world but standing out from the world. Salvation is not saved in one's sins but from one's sins to live a life zealous unto good works, denying ungodliness, living right in a world gone wrong and looking forward to the coming of Jesus (Matthew 1:21, Ephesians 2:8-10, Titus 2:11-14). This is all about living a life different from this present world.

That's why Christian education should be be reasonably strict. Anything that will distract the students' attention from learning Christian principles is banned. That's why spanking in schools should not be outlawed. The rise of problematic students today also increases because Christian discipline is often confused with abuse. The Bible recommends the rod of correction. Spanking students at the bottom with a paddle or spanking their hands with a ruler should be a reminder wrong is always wrong. The problem is when people today can't tell the difference between spanking and child abuse. You spank a child at the buttocks for doing something wrong that's discipline. When you starve the child, mutilate the child and beat up the child to death then that's when it should be considered abuse.

The battle against Satan's forces is getting tougher for this reason. We're in the last days. Satan knows his time is almost up. The only way for the end to come is when the Gospel is first preached across the world (Matthew 24:14). Watch out for the signs for wars and rumors of wars, the rise of wickedness and a society gone wrong but the Lord won't be returning unless the Great Commission is first fulfilled. Christian education seeks to evangelize and create a new group of evangelists. But how can they produce effective evangelists if they don't toughen up with military-like discipline?